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Current SAD administrator at Benfica, Rui Costa is a vice-president candidate on the re-nomination list of Luís Filipe Vieira. The former player rejects the role of ‘yes, man’ and assures that it will only take four years to consider the possibility of being a candidate for the club’s leadership himself.
“Honestly, there has been a lot of talk about this in recent days, after the president’s statements, but let me tell you that that was not why I accepted the invitation to the meeting. It is not because of the obsession of having to become president of Benfica. I do not hide all the pride I have in listening to the current president of Benfica, who made the history that he made at this club, considering that I can become in the future. It is an honor for me as a Benfica player. Now, until then, my role will continue to be what it was, in football terms. I am getting to know the club from within also in another area. But, until four years from now, I will be the first to evaluate whether or not I have the capacity to be president of Benfica. Also because I am too Benfica fan to accept a position at Benfica that I do not feel capable of fulfilling. Therefore, I will have four years here to understand, above all, what my abilities are. Then the partners will always decide what comes next. If I consider myself ready and suitable for a position of this responsibility and this dimension, I will assume my responsibilities at Benfica, as I have always done. Although there are many people who consider me hidden, because they do not understand well the dynamics of a football team, I never shirked my responsibilities. If I consider myself prepared and fit for the job, I can move on. Otherwise, I will be the first to say that I am not ready, ”he explains in a lengthy interview with tribunaexpresso.pt.
Recently, however, Rui Costa has come under fire from club figures.
“For those who say that I am used to it, my life story may not be different from that of many other soccer players or citizens, but I am proud of it. I was not born rich, I was born in a basement in Damaia, I fought all my life to be a footballer at Benfica, I became a Benfica player, I went abroad, I was 12 years in the most important championship of the time, I was European champion , I had 94 Portuguese international times, I was captain in all my teams, I became sports director of Benfica, I became administrator, they invited me to be number two in the direction of Luís Filipe Vieira and this is not used by anyone. This is not achieved by being a banana for anyone. You conquer with who I am, with the responsibility that I have always assumed in my life in everything I do, whether at Benfica, at home, at my companies, or with my family or friends. . Therefore, I do not allow myself to be considered a banana. You can’t do everything I did in life just because, ”he refutes, even assuming some disagreements with Luís Filipe Vieira himself.
Here are some more excerpts from the interview:
Bernardo Silva’s criticisms: “It is clear that people who are not happy with this direction hope that the public figures of Benfica will have statements against it. But to do that, it would be necessary for him to also think like them, to be against. In the same way that I respect those who are against the management, they also have to respect me for being in favor of what Benfica has been in recent years. Can we do better? We can. Are we going to work hard to make it even better? We will definitely go. But I also don’t allow Benfica to be judged at this point as if we haven’t won a title in 10 years. Benfica won this decade because they haven’t won in many years. He created a project, a structure, that allows the club to face the future with tremendous optimism, both economically and sportingly. Therefore, I respect those who are against, I am not one of the people who generates controversy and thinks that there is only one voice inside. I am obliged, out of courtesy and benevolence, to respect contrary opinions, but I can also have my opinion. Now, people can’t just want me to have their opinion. Mine, right now, is one of continuity. I once again emphasize something that is very serious for me: when I say that it is continuity, I am not saying that it is the conversation that I am the future president of Benfica. It is a continuity because at this moment I do not consider that Benfica should interrupt everything they have done so far. I fully believe in the president’s strategy to make the club better and bigger. When I returned to Benfica 14 years ago, it was almost impossible for us to aspire to be national champions. I am a participant witness of the evolution that this club has had. I could never at this moment not believe that this is the way. Given that, as of Wednesday, whoever wins, we all have to bear in mind that Benfica is to be united and not divided. Because I see so much noise in the club that it seems that we have not won anything in 10 years. Or that you haven’t grown anything in 10 years. And this is completely absurd. A striking case: no one but me, like me, yes, but no one other than me suffered for not having won the penta. There is no one who has suffered more than me. They may have suffered like me, because I am no more than anyone, but no more than I am. But that also cannot erase the fact that we were four times champions, something that Benfica had never achieved in history.
European ambition: “Benfica has failed in recent years when it comes to the European dimension. I repeat: we have to be as ambitious as possible, that is why we have to believe that it is possible to achieve a European title. Now, don’t talk to me about a European title with all this lightness, as if it were the most banal thing in the world. We have just talked about Bernardo Silva: I still want him to be the European champion, but when we talk about investments, he is in a team that invested 14 times more than Benfica and has not yet managed to reach a European title, not even a Final. “
The other presidential candidates: “Today it seems that if I am in a campaign and the candidates say that they are going to be European champions, I have to say that I am going to be European champion twice. And if there is another who says he will be a two-time European champion, I will be a three-time European champion. Ready. What I sincerely hope is that Benfica will rejoin from Wednesday, regardless of who wins.
Legal procedures: “The closer we got to the elections, the worse it was. From the personal to the collective. Is this nice? It is not. It is not pleasant for anyone, not for those who work here or for the president. Now I ask: what were we condemned to? Anything. Everything is said about that ».
Why Benfica members should vote for Luís Filipe Vieira: “First of all, I call for a vote, I think I should vote. I think it is one of Benfica’s most competitive elections, for many years there was not an election with so many people. Unfortunately, due to the pandemic problem, there had to be a change in date and this can create some difficulties in voting. The club tried, as I understand it, to give everyone a chance to vote, so I appeal to vote, whatever it is. After the elections, Benfica must be united, whoever wins. Regarding the vote in Vieira: I think the work is more than visible. There has to be that recognition and that confidence, knowing that the work is not finished yet, that there is still much to do. Luís Filipe Vieira, for everything he has done for the club, deserves continuity. Benfica went through many times of glory, many years ago, then went through a crisis in which it almost closed doors and today it is a club recognized at national, European and world level. I know very well what Benfica is and it is something that I am proud of when I present myself before presidents and directors of European colossi, who congratulate me on everything we have been doing at the club.
